‘One of the best players’: Jedd Fisch praises star Washington Huskies running back ahead of Big Ten debut season
By Ethan Lee
![Sep 2, 2023; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Jayden de Laura (7) celebrates a touchdown with running back Jonah Coleman (3) against the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks during the first half at Arizona Stadium. Sep 2, 2023; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Jayden de Laura (7) celebrates a touchdown with running back Jonah Coleman (3) against the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks during the first half at Arizona Stadium.](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3228,h_1815,x_0,y_30/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/163/01j4qxks60gf2a4mtaxc.jpg)
While many in Seattle aren’t overly familiar with the way Jedd Fisch runs a football program, one star on the Washington Huskies football team definitely knows what it’s like to play for UW’s head coach.
The Washington Huskies football program is gearing up for a new era as it moves into the Big Ten and is now led by Fisch and while Jonah Coleman is also new to the Huskies, he’s going to be a big part of Washington’s success this season.
During the 2024 Big Ten Media Days, Fisch took center stage to discuss the team’s future and highlight key players, such as Coleman. And while discussing Coleman, Fisch noted that the talented running back was instrumental in his previous stop at Arizona and will be key with the Huskies as well.
“When we picked up and we left to come to University of Washington, Jonah came with us. Jonah is one of the best players, the best running backs in college football,” Fisch said.
Washington football: Jedd Fisch thrilled with Husky running back Jonah Coleman
As Fisch explained, Coleman was a key reason for the sort of 10-win success that the Arizona Wildcats saw during the 2023 college football season.
“Jonah was a running back for us at the University of Arizona. He was a part of our recruiting class of 2022, which I would say changed Arizona's football program,” Fisch said.
That’s a fair evaluation of that recruiting class. During the 2021 season, Fisch managed to get just one win from the Wildcats as he worked to rebuild the Arizona football team. In 2022, that win total jumped up to five games. And then, last season, Arizona managed to go 10-3, including a solid win over the Oklahoma Sooners in the Alamo Bowl.
Coleman’s part in all of that?
Well, in 25 games, Coleman carried the ball 203 times for 1243 yards and nine touchdowns while also catching 33 passes for 307 yards and an additional touchdown. Coleman was a star for the Wildcats and it stands to reason that his familiarity with Jedd Fisch’s offense and this coaching staff will enable him to be a star on Montlake as well.
The Huskies’ head coach sure seems to think pretty highly of his talented running back.
“Jonah is one of the best players, the best running backs in college football,” Fisch noted. “Statistically led the nation in yards per carry a year ago, one of the highest-graded players in Pro Football Focus, and on top of that, just finished his last quarter with a 4.0 and is on the dean's list.”
Generally speaking, that sort of glowing endorsement is a good thing. It’s great to see a coach publicly highlight a player’s talent on the field right along with his academic achievements off of it. Coleman is well rounded and that should help him fit right in with the Huskies.